06/05/2026
Gowerâs saltmarshes are proving to be incredible nurseries for young fish.
New research from Swansea University has shown that these coastal habitats support nearly three times as many fish as neighbouring mudflats and estuary shores. In a comprehensive study across the Burry Inlet and Three Rivers estuaries researchers recorded 8,525 fish from 21 different species. This represents the highest fish species richness ever documented in a UK saltmarsh.
The majority of the fish were juveniles making up 83 percent of the total. Species included Atlantic herring grey mullet European flounder and lesser sandeel. Six species were found using the saltmarsh as a year round nursery including Atlantic herring and European flounder which had not previously been recorded in this way in the UK.
The study also highlighted promising recovery at Cwm Ivy in north Gower. This naturally restored saltmarsh just ten years old already supports a consistently high number of the critically endangered European eel.
With saltmarsh habitats continuing to decline rapidly across the UK this research underlines their vital importance for marine life and the need to protect and restore them.
